The present invention relates to a new and improved method of measuring firing misses during firing at a movable airborne target and for scoring the measured firing misses, wherein there are continuously measured elevation angle and azimuth angle as well as the distance to the target, the data of the measurement results being stored in a process computer.
The invention further pertains to a firing miss-measuring installation for performance of the method, which is of the type comprising a television camera for tracking the movable airborne target, azimuth and elevation coding devices for measuring the position of the visual target line, a distance measuring device for determining the distance between the target and the weapon, and a process computer which is connected with the coding or encoding devices and the distance measuring devices, in order to record or plot the position and distance of the target. There are already known to the art different methods and installations for measuring firing misses. Prior art references relevant to this technology are, by way of example, German Pat. No. 2,402,204, German Pat. No. 2,302,247, German Pat. No. 977,816, U.S. Pat. No. 3,793,481, German Pat. No. 2,734,913, U.S. Pat. No. 3,854,821, German Pat. No. 2,408,407 and Swiss Pat. No. 578,722.
In the aforementioned German Pat. No. 2,408,407 there is disclosed a state-of-the-art firing miss-measuring installation of the type under discussion, which is designated as a hit scoring system for firing weapons. This firing miss-measuring installation contains a measuring apparatus connected with the weapon, in order to measure the angular position at the moment of firing the weapon. An electronic device, produces from the angular positions, digital values. A T.V.-camera is movably arranged in the angular directions, in order to be able to track the target by means of the pick-up tubes. Means serve for measuring the direction of the visual or sighting target line to the target, and there are also provided means for measuring the position of the target image at the T.V-image or monitor screen. There is further provided a distance measuring apparatus in order to determine the distance between the target and the weapon. A process computer, computates from the digital data during measurement of the angular position of the weapon and the angular position of the T.V.-camera and the position of the target upon the television screen as well as from the distance measurement, quantatively the deviation between the correct target line and the actual target line of the weapon, and the process computer is activated at the moment that the weapon is fired.
With this heretofore known equipment the firing miss is determined according to the following procedures. There are measured the following data and the same stored in a process computer:
(1) The setting of the television camera; PA1 (2) The distance between the target and the weapon; PA1 (3) The angular position of the target line of the weapon; and PA1 (4) The angular position of the visual target line of a target which has been recorded at the image surface of the television camera. PA1 (1) a second television camera arranged at an exact measured distance from the first television camera; PA1 (2) a respective target tracking device for aligning both of the television cameras at the target; PA1 (3) an analogue-digital converter in order to process into digital form the distance between the target and the projectile, appearing at the television screens of both television cameras; and PA1 (4) a process computer which is programmed such as to calculate from the two-dimensional spacing between the target and the projectile, appearing at both television screens, the spatial distance between the target and the projectile.
Then, at the moment of firing the weapon the process computer is turned-on so that the latter determines the exact target line of the weapon through which the projectile reaches the target. The actual target line of the weapon is then compared with the correct target line and there are determined the deviations between the correct target line and the measured target line of the weapon, in order to obtain a quantative indication of the accuracy during firing.
This heretofore known method is inaccurate, by virtue of the fact that the firing exercise is carried out with dummy ammunition instead of live ammunition, so that it is not possible to measure the distance of the projectile from the target. Rather, there only can be measured the angular deviations of the weapon from the probable correct angular settings, while taking into account the ballistics of the projectile.